Happy New Year Everyone

2009 is really almost here!!! May all who read this have a Happy & Prosperous New Year!

Dec 27,2008 Where did the time go?

It's been way too long since I posted anything here & I hope to get back into the habit of posting regularly.
I have not done any needle felting in ages, mostly knitting, Beading & leather work. I have gone back to work beading for a beaded suede & leather clothing designer. I do beaded applique on suede, lazy stitch on suede clothing & jeans. I am fortunate in that I can work mostly at home. I am starting to try to make some things to sell in my ETSY shop, but have not had a lot of time to work on my own things. Christmas gift making kept me busy when I wasn't beading for my employer. Christmas is past for another year & I hope to work on new things for my Etsy Shop.
If you get a chance, stop by my ETSY Shop and let me know what you think.

Needle Felted Rabbit Pin Tutorial

The site where this was hosted is no longer available, so I have posted the entire tutorial here.



Needle Felted Rabbit Pin Tutorial
Including start to finish photos
By: Charlotte Des Roches

Materials:
A sketch of the desired Rabbit
4 x 4 1/2 inch Foam Working Block
Felting Needle Size 38 Star
Core Wool
Pin Back
Embroidery Floss in desired colors

Directions:
Take a piece of Core Wool, that is about the size of your foam working block.
Draw out the basic shape of the desired Rabbit with your Felting Needle, by poking the outline of the shape over & over until it is well defined.
Start folding the extra wool on the outside area all the way around the outline, over onto the piece, poking as you do this.
Continue poking all over, firming up & smoothing out the entire Rabbit. Once the piece has become firm, turn the piece over & work on the back side of the piece. Pay special attention to rounding out the edges as you continue poking & firming your work. You also can begin defining the legs & ears & tail now.

Sew the pin back onto the back of the piece by stitching part way through the wool, so the stitches don't come through the front side. Note: the piece must be very firmly felted, so the stitches hold the pin back in place.

I decided to give my Rabbit a collar and eye of Embroidered French Knots.

If you have any questions or comments about this tutorial, please feel free to contact me.

New Items in my Etsy Shop

I added more items to my ETSY Shop.

Gnarl and his egg & his big sister Spring,
The Dragon Kids, and bunny pins & little
ducks and a new "Inchie" pin.

Needle Felted Bunny Pin Tutorial in The Simpler Times

Click on the Bunny to go to the tutorial

Click on the Button to go to the main page of the current issue.













There are two of my Bunny Pins in the First Annual Softie Easter Parade
Along with loads of other wonderful creations by many many artists!

Some of my beadwork in my Etsy Shop

Was another chilly day in New Mexico today after over 6 inches of snow, so I spent some time getting photos of some of my beadwork and got some of it added to my ETSY Shop
I will be adding more sometime soon, along with a bunch of Needle Felted things. Hope you enjoy the beadwork I have added so far. They are all my own designs & are One Of A Kind.
The picture is just one example, and I still have to add this set to my shop...

Member of the Year The Simpler Times Community

I was very surprised & honored to learn that I have been bestowed with the honor of "Member of the Year" by " The Simpler Times Community" It is a wonderful forum for those interested in Primitive Crafts & Decorating. Check it out if you are interested in things Prim.
Be sure to keep an eye out on-line for the new issue of "The Simpler Times"

To all my friends on the forum, Thank You!

Mary S made a Kitty using my Tutorial

Mary S is a fellow member of The Thread Artist Guild and for her very first try at Needle Felting, she used my tutorial (a few posts down) on using a wire armature & she created this adorable little kitty. His name is Snowflake. He is three inches to the top of his head and about four and a half inches in length. Bravo Mary!!!!!

Frugal / non electric / handmade fulling machine

For those on a budget & don't want to ruin their washing machine with all the fuzz & who enjoy spending time on line, here is a description of the new fulling machine I made today, with the help of my hubby.

You only need 2 things.
a 5 gallon plastic bucket with a snap on lid
a new plunger (Preferable to one that had been used in the toilet I think)

Make a hole in the center of the lid, just large enough for the plunger handle.

That's it..that's all...now it's ready to use.

I did 2 pair of little ballerina style slippers & 1 pair of adult size Mary Jane's in mine today...took about 2 gallons of hot water, a little soap & setting it in front of my computer chair, then, just like churning butter...up & down..up & down with the plunger handle...I was able to visit all my favorite sites & post messages...lol one handed..but that's ok...and got the slippers all felted just like I wanted them...just pop the lid off occasionally to keep an eye on how they were progressing...so remember to keep a towel handy so you can dry your typing hand...lol

Let me know if you try this...I really love it & hope it helps others too.

New listings in my Etsy Shop

Been a while, but I am finally getting some new things made to put in my Etsy Shop
I am really loving spinning & knitting & wet felting/fulling these little slippers...I have more ready for felting & more to get pictures of, so more will be added soon. These are pictures of the ones I added today.
In the one picture, you can see the difference between felted & unfelted.

Crafter of the Month

I am very proud to announce that I have been chosen February "Crafter of the Month" on CraftBuddy.com . You can see my bio & some pictures of my work & there is a great forum there as well. Click on the link below to check it out.
Crafter of the Month for Feb

Special Thanks to Fred & all the wonderful folks on the forum who selected me for this wonderful honor.

Special hello to all my Craft Buddies!

Needle Felted Life Size Beavers

Wow...doing life size Critters takes a lot of wool, a lot of poking & a long time to complete. This pair took 2 solid weeks!!!

There is an article about making this pair in the Feb issue of Mini Teddy Hugs

Needle Felted Mystery Critter with Wire Armature Tutorial

This project can become just about any 4 legged Critter you desire, by adding the desired color outer layer of wool & features.


I started with 22 gauge florists wire and twisted a basic shape.

Next I took some wool yarn that I had spun, and wrapped the armature. I made a small tight ball of the yarn to fit inside the loop of wire for the head.

Next I started adding small amounts of core wool, wrapping it around the body, and started carefully needle felting it on using a 36S needle, working very carefully & slowly so I didn't hit the wire. What seemed to work the best is to poke parallel to the wire, if you get what I mean.





I added small balls of core wool to the bottom of each foot, because I didn't like how close the wire was to them.

Now just keep slowly poking & shaping & adding core wool to end up with the shape you want...this could end up being a wide variety of different kritters, using this basic wire armature. Most importantly, work slowly & carefully, so that you get it well felted & do not break any needles.

Needle Felted Chili Pepper Mini Tutorial

1. My felting needles
2. Piece of Core Wool
3. Core Wool after Carding with #6
4. Chili taking shape (Felted with size 36T)
5. Firmly felted chili (felted with size 38S & 40T double needle)
6. My carding combs
7. Red Roving
8. Carded Red Roving
9. Red wool being added to Chili
10. 3 finished Chilis
11. Rovings used for the Chili's

Calla Lily PictureTutorial - Needle Felted

This is a picture Tutorial of how I Needle Felt Calla Lilies.


If you have any questions, I would be happy to help.